


Ruthless Suppresant

by orphan_account



Category: Captain America (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: AU Verse, Alpha!Steve, Dirty Thoughts, Explicit Sex, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, M/M, PastOmega!Steve, Prompt: AvengerKinkLJ, Pseudo-Science, a/b/o dynamics, omega!Tony
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-09
Updated: 2016-07-22
Packaged: 2018-07-22 13:20:04
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 13,245
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7440754
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>PROMPT:<br/>Before the super soldier serum, Steve was 100% Omega. His size, poor health and omega nature made him the favorite target for bullying from half the Alphas in Brooklyn. He grows up hating Alphas and swearing he’ll never mate with one of those animals. </p><p>Then, to his horror, the super soldier serum completely changes his biology, making him the most alpha of Alphas imaginable. Refusing to be what he hates, Steve decides he won’t be an Alpha. He’ll just ruthlessly suppress his own nature/desires and avoid Omegas as much as possible. </p><p>When he becomes an Avenger, it’s the perfect solution, because obviously all of the other Avengers are going to be Alphas too. Wait, what? Bruce and Clint are actually Betas? Fine, fine but there certainly won’t be any Omegas on the the- Tony? Tony? Really? Fu- you know what, Steve hadn’t even noticed, because his Alpha-ness is just so completely suppressed! </p><p>So maybe Tony does keep accusing him of being over-protective. And possessive. And Steve might have started day-dreaming about bending the little brat over and taking him in the toppiest ways his filthy imagination could devise- </p><p>But Steve’s totally not an Alpha. No siree Bob. </p><p>Really.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Zero to Hero??

**Author's Note:**

> Warning: Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con (NOT EXPLICIT) 
> 
> PS: The mistakes are Mine. Please be nice~

 Steve’s will is tested at the face of the front door of their house. 

It would be so… _easy_ to slam the door shut, and yet that would only prove how… _affected_ he was.

With a sigh, he closes the door gently behind him. There was nobody home, but that wasn’t a surprise.

Their house, if you could call it that, isn’t what people would call big but it was enough. The living room was the biggest part of the house, it had a couch and a coffee table with a stack of old newspapers, which were marked completely in red and opened at the _Jobs Section_. Steve allows himself to collapse on the couch, his breath still catching with exertion.

He shrugs off his shoulder bag, wincing all the while. It had been too long since his last street fight, but this one had not been easy to avoid. They were just- a sharp inward breath. “A-hhh..” Steve groaned aloud, it seems his wrist was not as okay as it first appeared. Probably  another sprain... great.

_“Oh look… It’s the **Omega.”**_ A cruel voice crooned in his ear.

Omega. Steve’s laughter comes out broken… nothing but hard puffs of air. He didn’t hate what he was, he never did and never will. However, that didn’t stop people from despising what he symbolized.

Ever since he came out as an Omega as a kid, it was always the same whispers… again and again.

_“Did you hear that Steve is an omega?”_

_“Does that mean he is a girl?”_

Children had always been the cruelest, they didn’t know what they were talking about. Their minds are an exact mold of their parents own beliefs. Practical duplicates of each other, except children didn’t hide their disgusts. They didn’t have to, bullying was normal. Especially for someone of Steve’s stature. He was short, skinny and always sick.

The adults didn’t help either. They’d turned a blind eye to the bruises, as if they had magically appeared out thin of air. They would occasionally stare at him with pitying eyes, pretending as if it mattered to them, but he never mattered. Not Steve… Not the Omega.

Steve has met other omegas, but they weren’t like him. They listened to their parents, they followed the rules that society had laid out for them. The few he’s met had eyes that had long stopped shining, they had given up long long ago.

The betas were bearable, they didn’t bully him, but they also did not understand. A few had taken the chance and talked to him, some in the assumption that Steve himself was a beta, however they backed off soon enough, not wanting to be ostracized along with him, he didn’t blame them.

In all his life Steve only ever had one friend. A beta, that goes by name of James Buchanan Barnes. He met Bucky during a dark time in  his life, but that wasn’t a moment he will ever regret. Not if it meant losing Bucky. Bucky was the only one who stood by Steve, even when all the odds were against them. 

He could still remember that particular day…

It wasn’t odd back then for Steve to get involved in a fight, physical or otherwise, at a bi-weekly basis. He was… a sport for Alphas… heck, maybe even a sick rite of passage. They wanted to dominate him. They wanted him to bow down, if not for pleasure then for pain. They wanted his submission…

Unfortunately for them, Steve had never been one for giving up... ever.

He didn't give up that day either. He fought against them, wielding the metal cover of a nearby trashcan as his only weapon. He stood his ground valiantly, but that day was different from all the other times. They had a lust in their eyes that wasn’t about just old violence. Steve didn’t see that, not at first, maybe he would have run if he had known… maybe not.

He was closing in on his first heat, earlier than most, but it was very obvious to anybody close enough to get a hint of his scent.

_“Why don’t you come out behind of that shield of yours?”_

_“We only want to have fun…”_

Their voices were crisp and clear in his mind, even after so many years.

_“Are you sure about this?”_ One of them had been rather young, Steve remembered.

_“Are you kidding me? We can definitely take him.”_ Their leader scoffed.

Steve can remember how the anger boiled inside of him, how he wanted to charge at the bastard for insinuating that he was weak, but that was nothing to what he felt when he heard their next few words.

_“But isn’t he a boy?”_ The young one had asked. 

_“Listen Kid, when it comes to Omegas none of that stuff matters. They are bitches, made for fuckin, thats what my Da told me, and what your Da will tell you one day.”_

_“B-but-”_

_“No buts! If you don’t want to, then go home! Run to your Ma’ and prove to everybody how much of a baby you are.”_

_“I- I don’t… wanna to go home.”_

_“Good, stay back for a while, see how it’s done.”_

By that point Steve had started looking around for other points of exit. He could take a beating, he’s managed to survive quite a lot during his short life, but this was different. His mom had told him about situations like this, she herself was a beta just like his father, but they knew enough, understood enough to know about the things that go on behind closed curtains.

Omegas weren’t good for a lot of things, if society is to be believed, they were nothing but fuckable toys that will never get pregnant, and even the ones that did were happily bonded and paid a good amount of money.

He learned early on, that if they mean to… do such things to him, then he needed to run… run as fast as he could and not stop until he found his way home.

There was no other exit to be found in the alley that day, they had cornered him, and the only way out was through them. Steve liked to think he could take them and that is what he thought, what he attempted to do.

He charged at them, and that surprised them for a time, he used the metal tin to temporarily incapacitate the leader, who spluttered over what was undoubtedly a broken nose. He sneaked under and between the other two goons, and the only one left was the little boy Alpha.

It was funny in a way, the boy was obviously younger but Steve was still much smaller. He didn’t stand a chance, and yet a part of him hoped that the boy would let him through.

He didn’t.

He remembered the filthy hands, too warm and too sweaty. They wrapped around his body in a tight deadlock. The other jerks were quick to move, grinning maliciously as Steve tried to struggle his way out of the young Alpha’s arms.

_“I’m sorry.”_ The young Alpha had whispered, his voice shaking but not with sincerity. One look behind tells Steve all he needed to know. The bloodshot eyes, the blown out pupils… the hard length pressing at the small of his back. 

It was _disgusting. **They** were disgusting. _That’s how they stayed in Steve’s mind, nothing but savages, animals who cared only for themselves.

The leader had approached Steve, a frown on his face with his eyes glinting with promised vengeance. _“We have a fighter… Don’t we guys?”_ The rest laughed, all breathy and dark.

Everything after had gone by in a sort of slow motion.

He wrecked Steve’s shirt, the buttons flying at every direction. The initial look over his body was of distaste, but one deep breath was enough to bring back the lust filled stares.

_“Not gonna scream? Gonna ask for help?”_ Steve’s mouth had plastered shut, every inch of his body screaming out for help but his face remained a blank mask.

He had spat on the guys face, which had earned him a sharp slap, one that had him wheezing. His episode stalled them, the cough didn’t leave and they started to panic. One of the goons wanted to gag him, but they were afraid that it would get worse, and that he'd end up dying.

Funny, the things they were willing to do and yet they still wanted to pretend as if they were anything but pure evil.

_“Shut up!”_ He didn’t, as if yelling would stop his stubborn cough, it had never listened to anyone before and it didn’t then. 

Bucky had been a surprise, for him and for them. One moment he was entrapped in the arms of the young Alpha, and then the next he was losing his footing and spiraling towards the ground. Bucky had caught him, appearing like a guardian angel with his bright blue eyes.

They didn’t stay for long, the young Alpha was bleeding from having been punched in the nose. The others crowded around him, distracted long enough for him and Bucky to make their escape.

They ran and ran, just like his mother told him. All the way home.

Bucky was hesitant to come inside their house, but a set of loud unknown footsteps was enough for him to throw himself inside. They hadn’t said a word to each other, not until Steve had collapsed on his couch, still wheezing from his coughing episode.

Bucky, young and confused, stayed standing by the door, staring at him in the most peculiar way. _“Why didn’t you scream for help?”_ He asked in a small but gruff voice.

Steve could only tilt his head and smile, that had been the start of their friendship.

It wasn’t bad after that, the memory was dark but Bucky was there to brighten his days. Bucky who witnessed him at his worst, he had always been there. He kept Steve from the more petty fights and joined him for the brawls that could not be ignored. 

However, now, he was alone. His mother was gone, and Bucky was off to war.

Steve wanted to go him... needed to go with him. He had tried to enlist along with Bucky, training as hard as he could, but his classification as an **_Omega_** and a sickly one at that, had him rejected in no time. Still, he trained, enlisting again and again, no matter how many times he was rejected. His most latest attempt had been today, but he was rejected yet again, despite the forged documents.  Still, that didn’t meant he was going to stop trying.

 

* * *

 

 

Everything changed that day. Bucky had come back home, for a short time. All dressed in his Army’s best, saving the day once more.

He drags Steve along for a  “double date.” Steve rolls his eyes at the invitation, but he goes anyways because it meant having more time with his friend.

Still, there were limits to Steve’s patience, and Bucky had seemed to be enjoying himself. So he sneaked away, there had been an enlistment office nearby.

Bucky catches him pretty quick, which leads to a fight. The last thing Steve would have ever wanted was to fight, but Bucky will understand, Bucky always understands.

Things get a little confusing after that, he’s dragged away by a Dr. Abraham Erskine, who asks him questions about the war. Steve answers to the best of his abilities, and is elated when he is announced a candidate for something called _Project Rebirth._

His life changed that day, and that’s how he ended up where he was now. In a car along with an Alpha by name of Peggy Carter. She confused him, she really did. Because she was just like him, and yet she stood for the very thing that he hated. 

Steve would have liked to think that he was not like them, like all those Alphas who judged based on something that Steve could not control, but that is who he was now. He didn’t hate all Alphas, but he will never treat them the same way, and he vows he will never fall in love with one. Even if it meant having to grow up old and alone. They turned him into one of them, a person who judged based on outward appearance, and _that_ is Steve’s greatest regret. Still, he will not allow it to take him over, his likes and dislikes did not matter. What mattered was stopping those who hurt other people, no matter who they where and where they were from.

Except it didn’t work out like Steve expected it to.

 

* * *

 

 

He didn’t come out of the experiment the same, that much was obvious. It had changed him, outside… and more importantly inside.

He remembers Peggy’s confusion. She had asked how he felt but it was all _wrong._ She smelled wrong.

In the car earlier, he had smelled the powerful scent of _Alpha,_ it was as inviting as it had always been, a comfort. Something he was meant to seek out and love, although he had spent most of his life denying such things.

But she stepped up to him and all he could think was _threat._ He blinked, but that that didn’t change anything, he chances a glance at Dr. Erskine, perhaps he could explain?

The good doctor looked in as much awe as Steve himself felt, but there wasn’t any time for questions. Things happened so fast, so many things. It was one after the other, and it didn’t seem important.

The major change was this…

Every Alpha, was now a threat. 

And every Omega, a delicious treat.

It was so wrong… and yet nothing had ever felt more right.

Still, his second gender was no ones concern, he goes into war marked as an Alpha. All his files are burned and no one will ever know the gender he was born with. No one.

The boy from Brooklyn… he had been an Omega.

But Steve Rogers? Captain America… he was an Alpha through and through, and always has been. If the rest of America is to be believed.

It irked Steve of course, that they wanted him to lie about who he was. However, in the end, a couple of lines in his contract asking him to maintain his Alpha status was only just that… words on paper. He was willing to do anything to fight the good fight, anything.

Steve Rogers was born sickly, but has always been a strong and confident Alpha. He proved all this growing up, fighting against every adversity. That is his life, that is who he is now.

No one knew different, everybody but Bucky and Steve had forgotten all about the Omega boy from Brooklyn. 

He will never forget who he was, but he’s willing to let people assume whatever they want, because to him?

He will always be an Omega.


	2. The Future!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the short and rushed chapter- I just didn’t want to spend too much time with the set up and forget about the actual story- the next chapter will be much longer! I promise, and it will be Tony’s POV.
> 
> Thank you for all the support so far <3 
> 
> ps: Mistakes are still mine, I edited on my phone so I might have missed a few things... Or a lot of things. Feel free to point them out, but Please Be Nice~

Life after waking up was full of distracting surprises.

It was distracting enough for Steve to forget about the fact, that he had woken up after seventy some odd years of being trapped in ice. Distracting enough to allow Steve to think about something other than the people who he had lost.

Steve liked to think that the _Chitauri Invasion_ had brought the team together, and it did, in it’s own convoluted way. However, he still didn’t feel like he completely belonged, everything was just so different.

It didn’t really sink in all that well at first. He was handed something called a _mobile phone,_ which they explained was really just a small, portable and efficient communicator.

They explained each different type in simple layman terms, and Steve got it. He understood. He had learned to be adaptable during the war. Still, that didn’t mean he was going to use it as often as they’d like.

But that wasn’t all. There were the colored TVs, the laptops and tablets (which everyone seemed to use nowadays), there were medical gadgets and medicines that he didn’t recognize and then there were the new buildings that had popped up and ruined his memory of what New York was _supposed_ to look like.

It all bothered him in one way or another, even though he tried his best to ignore the niggling feeling that something... wasn't right. 

Meeting the rest of the team, had him horribly lost.

Black Widow, or Natasha Romanoff, was the first one he had met. She was strong and obviously Alpha, and yet she had no scent. She was wearing something they called _Scent Blockers._

Which he read, is now a pretty common thing to do. Especially after the whole Second Gender Debate was settled and done. Each gender was now acknowledged to have the same rights, although from what Steve has seen thus far, that didn’t always work out the way it was supposed to.

Still, the new laws, had almost _everyone_ wearing those stupid blockers. It was really confusing, especially for Steve.

Romanoff’s lack of scent led to a very odd meeting. She joked around as if they had known each other for a while rather than just having met, although that was another thing that seemed to be a regular occurrence nowadays.

Her file had read espionage, which is probably the reason why she wore blockers. Although she seemed Liberal enough to not to care about what one’s Second Gender was, Steve didn't see her as the type to prove her point by following the main stream. No, her use of blockers is definitely just another job quirk. Her confusing non-existent scent didn’t seem to bother her at all and she obviously didn't even seem to care about the testosterone that Steve was surely throwing around.

They walk along the deck of the Hellicarier, and Steve notices that a lot of the agents were using some form of scent blockers. It must be a SHIELD thing. 

Then, there was Dr. Bruce Banner. Banner was an odd ball of nervousness and anxiety. Obvious in the way he dodged every single person headed in his general direction.

Although that might be because of what his files had called _the big green_ problem.

“Dr. Banner.” Steve had acknowledged, shaking the good doctor’s hands in what he hoped was not an overtly intimidating Alpha manner.

Because surprisingly, or maybe not so surprisingly, Banner was a _Beta._ Still, even though he was obviously not wearing any blockers, Banner’s scent was very confusing. Because, while it screamed Beta, there was a lingering scent of… something else.

Their conversation went on as expected. Banner obviously had a sore spot when it came to the ‘Hulk.’

Honestly though? Steve had expected worse. For one thing, he had thought the rest of the Avengers would be Alphas as well. 

 

* * *

 

Another thing he hadn’t expected was Howard’s son.

Anthony Stark, was a strange one indeed. He was also wearing scent blockers, much like Romanoff, and so Steve wasn’t able to discern his Second Gender from there.

His snark however, screamed Beta. Which was yet another surprise. His research on the Gender Debate was pretty extensive, and from what he had read, he didn’t think the world was accepting enough of the topic to allow so much Betas on the team, and yet here was Stark. 

“I don’t like it.” Steve had whispered to himself, staring at Loki from a distance away. How weird was it that he found Howard’s son stranger than an Alien God?

“What? Rock of Ages giving up so easily?” There’s the snark. Steve sighs inwardly, he’s gonna need a lot of patience with this one.

“I don’t remember it being over that easy… This guy packs a wallop.”

Stark seems to perk up at his last few words, as if realizing something.

“Still, you are pretty spry, for an older fellow.” Steve blinks, is he supposed to feel complimented? “What’s your thing? Pilates?”

“…What?” Steve’s goes blank at the following explanation, as well as the nickname. _Capsicle,_ Stark said, and it hit Steve a little too closely right where it hurts. Steve snarks back, still sore from the nickname.

Fortunately, they’re distracted from a fight by… another alien. As if the situation couldn’t get any weirder.

 

* * *

 

The other alien’s name was Thor, and Loki was his brother. He explains the situation as best as he could, which leads them to learning that there is now an alien _army_ on it’s way to Earth.

Stark comes into the room late and Steve finds himself standing up for no apparent reason. Stark seems surprised too, but he continues to babble without a single hitch. Steve sits back down, feeling like an idiot when Romanoff looks back at him with a single raised eyebrow.

“Uh, raise the mid-mast, ship the top sails.” Stark’s hands had a tendency to move as he talks. “That man is playing GALAGA! Thought we wouldn’t notice. But we did.”

He rambles on for a little bit with Agent Hill, before finally addressing the rest of the crew. “Am I the only one who did the reading?” He asks, and whilst Steve _did_ read the packets, he didn’t understand it in the way Stark obviously did.

“Does Loki need any particular kind of power source?” Steve asks aloud, hoping to contribute to the conversation. He was feeling a little hot under the collar, but he didn’t know exactly what for.

Banner answers his question instead, and Steve blanks out yet again. He should have taken the time he had off to review technical jargon, the words that Banner and Stark were using were not making a lot of sense to him, and he was actually trying.

He’s not sure what to feel about the brilliant Betas, they had more than a few little _quirks_ to bring to the table. He wonders if this is what they were missing during the war. Inwardly he celebrates for them, because they must have faced more than their fair share of adversity, and yet here they were.

“Finally, someone who speaks English.” Stark finishes off their short _explanation_ although Steve certainly didn’t feel at all comfortable with the knowledge he supposedly received.

“Is that what just happened?” Steve says dryly, still at a lost at their brilliance.

Stark and Banner ignore him in favor of shaking each other’s hands. There’s an obvious respect there, and Steve has to swallow down the instinct to walk away from embarrassment. What he’s embarrassed about? He didn’t know. Which was embarrassing in and of itself.

 

* * *

 

They share some harsh words when Steve passed by the lab, but to be fair. Stark had poked at Banner. Who knows what could have happened?!

From what Steve had read, one little throw would have been all it took, and Stark was a small guy, even for a Beta.

He had looked much larger in the suit.

Steve wasn’t his best when he was dealing with Stark, there was just something about him that got on Steve’s nerves. Perhaps it was the _Capsicle_ comment, maybe the likeness to Howard or perhaps it was just Stark himself… but there was just… something.

For sure he doesn’t appreciate the tone in which Stark spoke to him, as if Steve was nothing but the dirt under his expensive looking shoes. Still, Steve should have more patience than this! He had been training himself out of those sort of things, and Stark walks in and ruins it all.

What happens next is so much worse.

It turns out Fury had been lying all this time, to everyone. Then the scepter did something to them, it made them say things they didn't meant to say, but it still didn’t explain how badly Steve had reacted.

He kinda knew why, but that didn’t mean it made a bit sense. 

Stark had put an arm around him, and it just felt…

Steve pushes him off pretty quickly, but not before feeling very hot and very uncomfortable.

The near to non-existent distance didn’t help, Stark’s stare and his words proved that Steve really was nothing but dirt under his shoes. Not that Steve was any better, he had also said some cruel things and it was obvious that Stark had been affected by it as well.

Stark was a good actor, he had a mean poker face, but it wasn’t that. It was in the way he carried himself. The way his shoulders trembled lightly, and his knees as well. The way his eyes would look shiny one second and then clear the next. It was all very…

It made Steve want to…

Steve was getting tired of not knowing what he did and did not wanted to do.

 

* * *

 

The last member of the team, that he meets, is Clint Barton. From what he heard, Barton was one heck of a shot. Although for a while, he was shooting at all the wrong people.

He meets Barton on the way to Romanoff. He sort of just stood there, looking a little worse for wear, and smelling like it too.

His scent was off, barely there, although that was probably because he was being carted around by Loki.

Steve feels resigned when he realizes that Barton… was yet another Beta.

 

* * *

 

Something in Steve dies a little during that fight, and it wasn’t because of exhaustion, although that certainly came second.

Stark had launched a bomb into space without another thought. 

His choice was made in an easy and familiar way, he goes through the portal without thinking twice about the consequences.

“Stark, you know that’s a one-way trip?” was all that Steve could say. 

Stark doesn’t answer, and Steve resolves himself with another goodbye. He wonders if it’s fair? He had lost so much in so little a time.

It felt so… empty.

Thor gives him a curt nod, and he knows there’s no choice. The words come out crisp and clear. “Close it.”

Steve couldn’t tell himself to look away, _willing_ Stark to find a way to make it back. A second passes and he feels… cold. The portal is closed, nothing but a little dot in the-

“Son of a gun!” His broad grin doesn’t last when Stark continues to fall, and Steve freezes yet again. He should- but before he could even think about doing something stupid, the Hulk literally snatches Stark from the air, throwing him at their feet.

Thor rips the face plate off of Stark’s helmet, and Steve flinches when he sees the peaceful face. Too peaceful.

Hulk roars in obvious fury, and Steve wanted to yell with him, but Stark jolts awake and Steve couldn’t be any happier.

“What the hell? What just happened? Please tell me nobody kissed me?” Stark rambles, and Steve admits that it is a lot more endearing now than it had been before.

“We won.” Steve is happy to announce, still grinning way too widely.

“Alright. Hey. Alright. Good job, guys. Let’s just not come in tomorrow. Let’s just take a day. Have you ever tried shawarma? There’s a shawarma joint-” and Stark continues on and on, and yes…

It was definitely adorable.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> STEVE: Please forgive him for being so clueless, I will explain this in the later chapters but I thought I’d mention it now. Steve has little to no experience with how Alphas and Omegas court, and so he won’t know why he’s feeling and doing things whenever Tony’s around, and Tony won’t mention it to him… just yet.
> 
> My excuse… is that even when Steve had been an Omega, he wasn’t treated very nicely by the Alphas, and so… yah. He’s just a terribly confused Super Soldier, please forgive him.


	3. Domesticity~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the all support thus far~ Here's the promised Tony chapter!
> 
> PS: All mistakes are mine. I didn't get to edit this as much as usual, so feel free to point out any obvious mistakes, but Please, be kind~

_“Iron Man? Yes.”_

Tony was not a simple guy, but that was a given. So they hadn’t wanted him on their boy group, _fine._ It was them who was missing out, not him.

_“Tony Stark? No.”_

So maybe he had been a little bit more sore about that particular recommendation than he wanted to appear, but still. It had been a particularly bad couple of weeks, and for a while there he had thought his death was a sure thing. There were very specific reasons for why Tony did the things he did, and they knew that.

They should just call it as it is.

Tony had skimmed through the contents of that file, and there had been a particularly _long,_ paragraph describing his Second Gender. So he was an _Omega,_ big deal! Around five percent of the world’s population consisted of Omegas, five! That's 370 million Omegas!

So maybe, that wasn’t as big as the population percentages for Betas and Alphas, but it wasn’t like he was the only Omega out there. Omegas had been around for ages, the same can be said for Alphas. Plus, his own kind had been experimented on ever since they had been discovered. They weren’t _that_  different from the rest, just a little smaller… and a touch hormonal.

Fortunately, SHIELD’s bull-headedness got them nowhere, they came running for his help soon enough. Plus, they got their comeuppance, when he exposed their plans for all to see, even wrangling in the help of their very own Wonder boy.

Steve Rogers.

Tony wondered what hole in the wall they had dug him out of, the dark ages probably. Especially with how open he was about how he was treating Tony. He saw the way Captain Spangles had stood up for him during the debriefing. That was some grade A, instinctive dominance right there. Not only that, he had been throwing around really high levels of testosterone whenever Tony was around. Frankly, Tony was surprised at how he was able to control himself from screaming his head off at the Capsicle about bigotry and the new Gender Laws.

But he kept his cool, and it earned him a brand spanking new title as one of the Avengers.

Alright… so it came with a few stipulations. Like certain upgrades, which SHIELD promises will stay with the team, and a place where they could quote _“Work on your abilities as a team.”_

A promise was a promise, and once one had moved in, the rest came piling after.

————————————————————————————

Tony blinks at his surroundings. He had spent the night working with JARVIS on upgrades for the suit, and time had gotten away with him. He was surprised he even made it back to his room.

“Good Morning.”

 _Okay,_ not his room then. He swears the ceiling in  _this_  room looked exactly like the one in his room. Although technically, the ceiling in his room was black, and the ceiling here was obviously white.

He yawns aloud, he should probably get some-

“Coffee?” Tony paws at the cup immediately, taking a big gulp as soon as it was within his grasps. “You look like you haven’t eaten in a day.”

“Probably.” Tony mumbled into the lip of his cup, watching as a plate magically appeared on the coffee table in front of him.

“I don’t think that’s very healthy.”

“Hmmm.” Tony had scooped up a spoonful of the delightful omelet in front of him.

“Ehem.” Tony blinks. _Right, there_ _’s some else in the room with him._ “Ah… yeah, I’ve been here the whole time.” Oops, must have said that last bit aloud. “Actually, about that. I hope you don’t mind. Fury said that it was best for me to stay here, with you and the rest of the team and-” Steve, because that’s who was standing in front of him right now, rubbed the back of his neck.

“It’s okay.” Tony shrugged, quickly gulping down the rest of his coffee.

“Look Mr. Stark-”

“Tony.”

“Right- To- I mean, huh?”

“My father was Mr. Stark, I’m just Tony.” _Right,_ so early morning conversations led to things that shouldn’t be said… well, being said. He was tempted to make JARVIS make a note of that, and prevent any future occurrences, but Steve was still standing there looking just as awkward as before.

“Right, Tony-” Tony’s eyes narrow.

“You should sit.” The standing thing, was making Tony a bit uncomfortable.

Steve blinks, but sits without further prompting.

“So, I just wanted to say I’m sorry, for the things I said, I didn’t know you enough to make those claims back at the helicarrier, and you certainly proved me wrong.”

A pause. “Well that was awkward.”

“Huh?” Steve was looking a little bit more than confused, but not frustrated. _Interesting._

“Look Cap.” Tony grabs his empty cup, fully intending to stand up and get his own refill, but Steve stands instead. Walking all the way to the counter and back in order to pour Tony another hot cup of perfectly made coffee. _Hmm_ _… Also interesting._ “We both said some horrible things, that we probably didn’t mean. Okay? Let’s just leave it at that.”

Steve blinks, but nods. “I’m still sorry.”

“I guess… Well I didn’t mean what I said either.” Tony shrugs. “You’re something else Cap.” That earns him a small-but-open-mouthed smile, and _okay_ that got Tony a little breathless.

“Great, it was nice talking to you Tony.” And _wow,_ he looked like he was actually sincere about that. Tony rewinds the conversation in his head, wondering if he had done anything to deserve such sincerity. He almost misses Steve’s concerned glance at the forgotten omelet. “Did you not like it?” _Damn._ Steve worked those blue eyes of his pretty darn good.

Tony, at a lost for anything else to say, just picks up the plate and takes a big spoonful, and open his mouth in an exaggerated ‘ _Look, see? I_ _’m eating it’_ manner. Which, surprisingly, prompts an even bigger smile from Steve.

“Make sure you eat up, okay? Again, thanks for allowing us to live here.” Steve waves a hand and walks away in smooth jog.

“Huh…” Tony finishes the rest of the omelet in silence, not knowing what exactly he should be feeling.

On the one hand there was the obvious Omega treatment, but for Steve it seemed almost natural. As if his manners didn’t allow him to act in any other way. However, on the other hand, Steve’s personality was nothing like how an _Alpha_ should be. Now, the scent- because he wasn’t wearing any blockers -made certain what gender Steve Rogers really was, but he didn’t talk like it? Does that even make sense? He acted like one, but he talked like something else.

Tony shook his head. It’s way too early to be thinking of confusing things, and Steve? Well, he was definitely more than a little bit mind-boggling.

——————————————————————

So he might have ended up back on the living room the next morning, this time sort-of-maybe-on purpose?

Just like yesterday, he slept on the big comfy couch, nursing a single glass of the good stuff. That means coffee, by the way, and okay maybe it didn’t make much sense to drink coffee right before preparing to sleep. That was probably the reason why he had spent the better part of the night, _thinking_ rather than actually sleeping. Not that either of those things got him anywhere.

However, waking up proved to be worth it.

He blinks himself awake, and this time he knows where he is, and who the person sitting across from him was. “Good Morning.” Steve smiles, then immediately stands up to grab, what Tony assumes, is a cup of coffee. He was right, and before long he was sipping another suspiciously _perfect_ cup.

With coffee delivered, and Tony forcing himself awake enough for human conversation, Steve stands up and grabs a plate of… something.

“I hope you don’t mind, I forgot to ask permission yesterday as well, but JARVIS said I could use whatever I wanted from the fridge.” He looked sheepish, _why did he look so sheepish?_ “I decided on something simple today. JARVIS said you like a simple breakfast, so I thought eggs and bacon would be the best.”

“JARVIS?” Tony mumbles, his brain still a little foggy.

For some reason Steve blushes at the question, and _okay_ Tony was definitely awake now. “Yah, he also showed me how to work that coffee machine of yours.”

“Huh.” Tony wasn’t able to say anything more than that, although not for a lack of trying.

“Are you always like this?” Steve says this… fondly? But there’s a twinkle of concern in his eyes.

“What do you mean?”

“Well, you look like you haven’t gotten any sleep.” Steve shrugged. “Plus, I rarely see you eating.” Tony pauses at that, picking up a piece of bacon and stuffing it in his mouth. Steve chuckles, and _boy_ he had not expected that. “Right. Okay, but that’s only breakfast. You don’t come down for Lunch or Dinner.”

“No one else seems to.” Tony grumbles, grabbing a spoonful of some delicious scrambled eggs.

Steve rolls his eyes, before grabbing Tony’s cup for a refill. _Huh, there he goes again._ “Bruce came down earlier for some tea, but you were still asleep. Natasha and Clint also left while you were asleep, but they’re usually around here when they’re not at SHIELD.”

It was Tony’s turn to roll his eyes. Of course Wonder Boy, after spending a total of _one_ day here, had managed to track everyone’s habits. Steve sets down the new hot cup in front of him, and Tony doesn’t hesitate to make a grab at it, only for it to be dragged towards concerned blue eyes. Tony glared, but it didn’t seem to work at all in his favor. “At least come down for dinner?” Steve inches the coffee closer. “JARVIS said you like Pizza, I can order us a few boxes?”

Tony rolls his eyes, right before childishly making another grab at the coffee. Steve, like the mature _adult_ that he was, keeps it out grabbing distance. “Please?” Tony could only narrow his eyes. _What was Steve hoping to get out of this?_ But Steve just looked so sincere, those big blue eyes so large and concerned. Tony sighs. “Fine, I’ll be down for dinner, mom.”

That earns him a toothy smile, and his cup of coffee. All is well in the world.

Tony still wasn’t anywhere close to figuring out, why Steve is deciding to devote so much of his time babysitting him. However, looking down at the plate of delicious food and the equally delicious coffee, Tony counts this morning as a win.

The afternoon however, wasn’t. The rest of the day proved to be more frustrating than he thought it would be.

Okay, so sue him, he completely forgets about his promise to join Steve for dinner. But he totally didn’t mean to.

Tony cringes at the thought of even going near Steve right now, he may have been acting all nice that morning, but it was never a good idea to stand up an Alpha. They tend to get very frustrated, very fast, and Tony was just a _lowly_ Omega.

Right, so the train of thought wasn’t really helping his mood any, and he goes back home preparing for a fight. It was 1am and way passed dinner time, and hopefully Steve’s bed time as well.

He passes by the living room, purposefully, steeling himself for anything and everything. What he does not expect however, is a sleeping Steve, in front of several boxes of opened pizza. It doesn’t escape Tony’s attention that Steve was sleeping on _his_ couch. In all sense of the word, but more importantly the couch Tony had found himself sleeping in for the past two days.

Tony bites his lips, his mind in a complete chaos of _Whats and Whys._

He sets down the iron man suit-case, and unbuttons his jacket whilst simultaneously slipping off his shoes. He adjusts his tie as he quietly moves towards Steve, socks meeting softly against the plush carpet.

The TV was on, and set on the news, with the remote close to falling over in Steve’s outstretched hand.

Steve was… softer like this. His mouth was slightly opened, letting out small puffs of air, and his hair slightly ruffled. He was dressed in a set of semi-casual clothing, although for Steve, that was probably a lot more casual than he was used to. The clothes were a little creased, but his white shirt is still tucked neatly into his tan pants.

Tony kneels on the carpet in front of him, not touching, just watching as Steve’s chest moved calmly in his sleep. Tony leans an elbow on his knees, in order to prop his head up as he thinks.

So he waited?

Not only that, he was watching the news. Maybe in hopes of finding out what got Tony so late? Tony shakes his head, that was a little presumptuous, even for him. He sighs aloud, looking back at the peaceful face, into calm pools of blue- _wait._

“You’re here.” Steve smiles at him softly, stifling a yawn with his hand.

“You’re awake.” Tony rushes to stand, only to back up against the coffee table, and landing right on his ass.

“Whoah. Are you okay?” Steve is sat up in no time at all, offering a hand. Tony stares at said hand, for some unfathomable few seconds. “Tony?” Tony blinks, _so_ _… not mad then?_ He takes the offered hand, whilst simultaneously worrying his bottom lip. “You look tired.” Steve pulls Tony gently and way too easily, into a spot next to him on the couch.

“Ah… yah. It was, a pretty rough day.”

Steve offers another smile. “Well, atleast your home.”

“Right.” Tony shrugs, this was way too unreal. Steve opens his mouth, and Tony expects questions. _Why did you come home so late? Why didn_ _’t you at least call?_

“Have you eaten?”

“Uhm… what?” _Okay,_ Steve really needed to stop being so… weird. Tony Stark being at a loss for words, well… isn’t Tony Stark!

“The rest of the team ate and headed to bed.” Steve shrugs, smiling sheepishly. Tony wanted to ask _Why didn_ _’t you?_ “But, I ordered a box of your favorite, and I made sure no one touched it.” A bigger smile this time, now full blast with those _fucking_ shiny-white teeth. “Give me a second, I’ll go heat it up for you.”

Steve stands quickly, leaving Tony by himself. Which was probably for the best.

 _What is up with him?_ Tony watches as Steve pops a whole box of pizza out of the fridge, and prepares to put it in the oven. Steve, is too busy to spare him a glance, but Tony looks away just in case.

Okay, so Steve Rogers.

He makes coffee.

He makes breakfast.

He asks Jarvis what Tony likes.

He waits up, when Tony comes home late.

These were all text book Alpha characterizations. Ones usually reserved for Alpha’s hoping to reserve themselves a mate, and yet Steve wasn’t even angry at him for standing him up! That’s like the least Alpha-thing to do! Tony groans quietly, running a hand through his hair.

Steve’s gender wasn’t really a subject of debate here, as mentioned before. He was obviously an Alpha, but… but what? He acted like one half the time, and then confusing in the next. And what does he intend to do with Tony anyways? He was being classic Alpha, caring for and babying the nearest fuckable Omega, and yet that couldn’t be what he meant to do. He acted like the things he did for Tony was normal, as if there was nothing absolutely weird with fetching Tony coffee when Tony could very well do it himself.

Maybe Tony was over reacting? Maybe the whole, caring for people thing, was another one of those things that made Steve Rogers, well Steve Rogers. Tony shakes his head; his line of thinking was getting repetitive and it was all Steve's fault.

Tony stares unblinkingly at the muted TV, not knowing where he should go from there. Fortunately, it didn’t take too long for the smell of freshly heated pizza to permeate through the room. Tony strains himself not to look back, not that it mattered. A few seconds later and Steve is clearing space on the coffee table for the large box of New York pizza.

“Here.” He hands Tony a small plate, with several napkins on top, as well as a cold glass of water. Steve picks up a single piece and even goes as far as placing it on Tony’s plate for him. “Pepperoni and extra sausage.” He smiles in his usual disarming way, whilst grabbing a slice of his own.

They eat their respective slices of pizza in complete silence, after Steve un-mutes the television. Although Tony watched Steve more than he actually watched the news, observing how oddly comfortable the other was acting. Not just with the flat screen TV, although that was a surprise on its own. But he doesn’t try to nag at Tony for the reason why he had come late, or even anything else really. He just sits there, on the floor, shoulder’s slightly hunched in a way that he never allowed when he was in uniform.

Tony blinks, another slice of pizza suddenly appearing on his previously empty plate. He doesn’t question that either, much more tempted to question the little quirk of Steve’s lips that comes up when he picks up said slice to take a bite.

Tony doesn’t try to break the silence, which was weird. He was never one for enjoying silences, but it was fine if it was with Steve. Well not fine, but not bad either.

———————————————————————————

Tony doesn’t purposely sleep in the living room this time, but he does still end up sleeping in there. _Sigh._ Although the blanket was a new addition, as well as the ruffled patch of brown hair sitting on the floor across from him.

“G’morning.” Bruce greets before going back to whatever it was that he was doing.

“Coffee?” Steve materializes out of nowhere, a steaming cup in hand.

Tony pauses, but takes the offer cup. “Thank you.” A beam of a smile was sent his way, and Steve disappears back to the open kitchen, which was already smelling like something amazing.

“You woke up earlier today.” Steve comments loudly, sounding way too joyful. Tony shrugs, words falling flat when he notices the glint of Bruce’s glasses. Bruce was watching him with a careful look on his face, not even bothering to pretend otherwise. He does however take time to gulp the rest of his tea, before standing up and preparing another cup of his own.

It was Tony’s turn to watch carefully. Steve doesn’t even try to stop Bruce from preparing his own tea, completely content with cooking whatever it was that he was making.

Tony quickly gulps down the rest of his coffee, and call him a little petty, but he stands up to grab a refill himself. He prevents the narrowing of his eyes, when Steve looks up at him with a small frown.

“Done already? You should have just asked me to get a cup for you.”

Tony blinks. _I see how it is._ “I can handle getting my own.” He snaps, and Steve looks a little… _sad?_ Well bo-hoo for him, his little ‘caring’ act, really is reserved for the only Omega in the team. Tony huffs, practically chugging his new cup of coffee.

“Did you want some pancakes? They’re blueberry.” _My favorite, figures._ Steve puts on a smile, but it was a hesitant one. Tony almost rejects the pancakes on principle alone, but not when he notices Steve ask Bruce the same question.

“Just one for me, thanks.” Bruce easily agrees, and Steve happily prepares a plate for him.

 _Hmm_ _…_ Tony waits a few seconds to answer, a few seconds too long it seems, because Steve was looking at him again. With the same hesitant smile. Tony sighs inwardly, before nodding. Steve’s smile is a little less hesitant now, as he piles three medium sized pancakes on top of each other.

Tony balks at the amount of food, but takes it nonetheless. The breakfast continues silently for a while, as Steve prepares his own plate of food. Putting a lot more than three pancakes.

It was kind of awkward now, unlike last night. Where Tony had fallen asleep to the quiet lull of the news. Bruce finishes his food way too quickly, and waves goodbye, as he heads back to the new lab Tony had prepared for him.

Tony’s cup of coffee finishes way too quickly as well, and Steve notices but he sorta just stares at it, rather than doing what he obviously wanted to do. _Props for that._  Tony held back a sigh, almost wanting to give in to the big-pleading blue eyes, but no. He was much closer to the coffee machine, thank-you-very much, and so he pours his own cup, even going as far as to offer Steve a cup of his own, as challenge. “Coffee?”

Steve doesn’t answer for a few seconds, tilting his head ever so slightly. A few seconds later, he makes his decision and ends up with a soft smile on his face. _Whatever that meant._ “Sure.” Steve says, as he holds out his own mostly empty cup.

Tony’s hands were shaky as he poured, which was unlike him, but Steve didn’t comment on it. He just smiled, not even trying to take the kettle away from him, in case he ‘hurt himself.’ Which was something most Alphas would have done.

Tony sets the kettle down with an odd feeling of finality.

Steve Rogers, was definitely not like most Alphas.

——————————————————————————————

Tony had started acting weird and not like himself, from the day Steve had first arrived on the mansion, and he was getting tired of it.

It’s been a week of mostly the same thing.

Steve still poured him coffee most of the time, he always cooked breakfast and occasionally even dinner. Tony also discovered that he cooked everyone else breakfast. Even the spy twins ate Steve’s breakfast before heading off to SHIELD. Not only that, he also prepares them coffee, although he certainly doesn’t pour them for Natasha, neither does he do it for Clint. Although Clint didn’t seem to drink coffee at all.

Tony even joined them on one of their whole movie-night/dinner affairs. Steve had asked JARVIS to order some food, and everyone agreed on Chinese takeout. It was comfortable. Steve didn’t even try to prepare plates for anyone, he just ate his own order and joined along with sharing the dumplings and corn soup that they had ordered in a large bulk.

They watched a couple of random movies, mostly in silence, but it was comfortable. Everyone saying their goodbyes as Tony finds himself sleeping on the couch, yet again. He really needed to stop doing that.

Today however, he heads down the stairs, having slept in his room for the first time that week, showered and dressed impeccably.

Steve is alone in the living room, hunched over a book on one of the recliners. Tony had woken up a little later than usual. Bruce had probably gone back to the lab, and the spy twins were off doing their spy work, which they had mentioned was really just them tying off a few lose ends, before settling in for a much relaxed schedule, especially now that they were part of the Avengers.

“Morning.” Tony shoots a quick greeting on his way to the coffee machine.

Steve looks up from his book in an almost daze, but offers him a smile. “Good Morning Tony.” He moves to stand up, but Tony stops him with a wave of his hand.

“Chill, Cap. I can handle grabbing some food.” Steve just smiles, nods, and puts the book he was reading on the table. Tony lift an eye brow. “Don’t stop on my account.”

Steve just shakes his head, standing up to seemingly refill his own cup of coffee. “It’s better when you’re left with a little suspense, more exciting that way.”

Both brows are up now, as Tony plates up some waffles. “Interesting way to put it.”

Steve just shrugs, still smiling.

Silence once again, but this time Tony breaks it with _small talk_ , oh how the mighty have fallen. “So how’s… you know, the life?”

“It’s okay.” Steve says gently, getting a little distant look in his eyes.

“Hmm… Got any hobbies?”

Steve does one of those little head tilts that he does when confused. “I like cooking?”

“Well, you’re good at it.” Tony shrugs.

“Thank you.” Steve smiles.

“What else? Do you have a fondness for collecting weird rocks, or something?”

Steve laughs at that, and Tony is _so utterly confused_ because that wasn’t even him trying to be funny! “None that I know of, no.”

“Right then, how about a little dancing?”

Steve freezes, which Tony almost doesn’t notice, because of how quickly he puts on a mask. “Nah. I’m horrible.”

“Hmm… That’s something I guess.”

Steve rolls his eyes, going with the flow. “I’m not perfect Tony.”

“We plebeians are thankful for your modesty.” Tony says in a sarcastic but playful tone.

Steve’s smile was totally fond. “You’re hardly a plebeian.” He continues gently.

Tony plays it cool, even as his heart jumps at the soft stare. “Good of you to notice.” Steve just shakes his head, a wide grin taking over his face.

_That_ _’s something indeed._

One thing Tony did notice that was consistent over the past few days, and really, it was what had kept Tony going. Was the fact that Steve had turned down the whole testosterone pissing match, and so now his scent was calm and peaceful, no longer striving to claim every surface as his.

Good of him indeed, old dogs _can_ learn some new tricks.

For now, since he has no real proof that Steve was doing it on purpose, he'll accept the _babying._  But one day, Steve will learn that he wasn’t just any regular bumbling Omega.

He was Tony Stark, and he wasn’t about to let any Alpha assume they have dominance over his life.

 _Hmmph._ He was worth much more than that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So stuff happened? maybe? XD As you can see... Steve is still clueless and Tony is very confused. xD 
> 
> Tony is soooo much fun to write! I hope I did him justice. <3


	4. Oddly... Beautiful

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies... It took a while :/ 
> 
> I'm currently working on a secondary project (which despite my initial belief, is not going to be uploaded any time soon, but I just can't leave it alone... sorry! I'm currently looking for Betas to help me with the developmental process, and it's been a little difficult. ahahah XD)
> 
> Still, thanks for all the support thus far! And know, that I will not be leaving this fic alone any time soon <3
> 
> PS: Mistakes are all mine. Please be Kind~

It was absolutely freeing, being able to do whatever you wanted. No Great Depression, no war, no alien invasion, it was just… Steve. Just him.

_“You know; I still don’t know how to dance.”_

_“I’ll show you how. Just be there.”_

The breeze was calming. Slow and steady, just like the waves that drifted to the shore.

“Enjoying the view Cap?”

“Ms. Romanoff.” Steve wasn’t even surprised, whilst she was good at sneaking, he had seen her trailing him hours ago. Although, allowing herself to be seen was probably her intention. “It took you a while.”

She shrugged, sitting with practiced grace, next to him on the concrete bench. “Natasha.” She said suddenly, Steve just smiled. “I figured, it would be best to allow you some time to think.”

“To think about what?” Steve asked calmly.

“Moving in with us.” She had said it so nonchalantly, that Steve was tempted to look into her eyes to see if she actually meant to say it so freely. “Everybody else, even Thor- although he rarely drops by, has moved into Tony’s mansion, at least while the Stark Tower is being repaired.”

“Fury mentioned it.” He shrugged.

“And did you consider it?” Steve took a deep breath, looking sideways to stare at ‘Natasha.’ Her Second Gender was obvious in the way she sat. Shoulders braced and ready for battle, although that might have been because of Steve’s aggressive scent, which he had never learned to turn off.

Still, despite the stiffness, she looks right at him with a fire in her eyes. _She’s… a lot like-_

Steve sighs, and turns back to the sea. “I did.”

“I see.” Natasha leans back into the seat, and doesn’t say anything further.

“How is it now?” Steve whispers after a few minutes of silence.

“How is what?” Steve could see her confused glance from the corner of his eyes.

“How is being a female Alpha like?”

Again, they were left with a heavy silence.

“I imagine it’s probably not that much different from before.” Natasha responds, just as quietly as he did.

“I… see.” Steve looked up at the sky, it was one of the things that had not visibly changed. Something he can’t help but cherish, although it didn’t make up for the things that _did_ change.

“But it’s not bad.” Natasha cuts the silence with a slightly more upbeat tone.

Steve looks at her once again. Strong, independent and ready to make a difference. _Just like… Peggy_. Steve sighs. “Yah… I guess not.” More silence follows, but it was light and peaceful.

“Here.”

“What is it?” Steve blinks at the procured item.

“Scent Blockers.” She shrugs, placing a small black tin case in his hand. Steve rolls the case on his palm, feeling a meaningful weight. “Those are oral capsules.” She continues to explain as Steve pops the lid open to see neatly packed, but unmarked capsules. “Meant to be taken every morning when most convenient.”

“Will it work?” He picks up one of the little white capsules, between his thumb and fore-finger, and holds it up the light.

“Why don’t you try it out.”

Steve blinks, putting the capsule back inside the case. “What is it for?”

“It won’t block your scent completely.” Her stance was more relaxed now, but still straight as she looked into the far distance. “But it should control your testosterone around… certain people.”

“Certain people?” Steve feels as lost as he probably sounded. Natasha looks back at him with an eye brow raised, but doesn’t explain, instead she stands, looking fully prepared to leave.

“Anyways, make sure to take them regularly when you decide to move in.” She turns back, with another thoughtful look. “You should talk to Tony as soon as you do.” She walks away, and Steve doesn’t try to stop her, still wondering who she meant by ‘certain people.’

 

* * *

 

 

Steve does end up following Natasha’s advice. He walks into the mansion at the dead of night, a few hours before sunrise, and is greeted by a British voice. Which only served him right, for being all sneaky rather than coming at a more respectful time.

“Good Evening Sir, how may I help you.” Steve could hardly stop the little jump in his step. He had not expected to run into anyone. He was kinda hoping to just scope out the place, and then leave, not very brave he knew, but he wasn’t sure he was prepared to be so closely involved with... new people.

“Uhm… I’m sorry for disturbing. My name is Steve Rogers.” Steve scans the hall carefully, but there was no one there.

“I am aware Captain Rogers.” That voice again, but where was it coming from?

“I’m sorry, but who am I talking to?”

“You may call me Jarvis Captain Rogers, my apologies for not introducing myself sooner.” Steve turns around, but there was no one at the entrance either. The name does, however, sound familiar.

“Where are you?”

“I am afraid I cannot accurately answer that question, but if it helps I am an AI developed by Mr. Stark.”

“A…I?”

“It stands for Artificial Intelligence.”

“Right.” Steve says slowly, promising himself to look up the term later on.

“Do you need any help finding your way around Captain Rogers? I’m afraid Sir has already fallen asleep, and cannot entertain you at this time, but I would like to offer my services in his place.” The whole disembodied voice thing still confused Steve very much, but he seemed… _friendly_?

“I wouldn’t want to take up your time?” Steve says sheepishly, making it sound more like a question.

“It is no trouble Captain Rogers, I do not need any rest and am more than capable of doing multiple things at once.”

“I see…” So maybe Steve _did_ need his help, the mansion was a lot bigger than he expected and he wasn’t sure exactly where he was. “Maybe you can tell me where I am right now?”

“You are currently on your way to the living room.” Steve pauses, so Jarvis was a lot more helpful than he had expected.

“Is there anyone else in there?”

“Yes Captain Rogers, Sir has fallen asleep on one of the couches.” Steve considers that for a little bit.

“Will I bother him if I stay there while he sleeps?”

“Sir is tired, and probably will not wake up unless you are being intentionally loud.” Steve hummed, finally walking forward.

He peaks through the open entrance between the hall and the living room. _Wow,_ the living room was huge! There were several large couches and recliners, in front of an even bigger television. It was not the bulky ones either, but a  _flat_ screen which everyone uses nowadays. Steve spots the sleeping Stark on the biggest couch, in fact, it was so big it managed to dwarf Tony’s huddled form.

Steve walks quietly into the room. The floor plan was open: with the living room area, a dining area and a kitchen area all at once. Still, despite its openness and ample amount of space, it managed to look pretty homey.

“Jarvis?” Steve calls in a whisper, not entirely sure how else to call the helpful ‘AI’ back.

“May I help you Captain Rogers” Steve almost let out a big sigh of relief when the AI had answered promptly, and at a volume level that was lower than before.

“Well…” Steve hesitated. “Maybe we can start with not calling me Captain?”

A pause. “If it pleases you Mr. Rogers.”

Steve sighs, okay it seemed the AI was just as stubborn as his creator. “Is it really okay to stay here?”

“Of course, although I can show your room if you are hoping to rest.” And _okay_ so Steve feels a little surprised at that.

“ _My_ room?”

“Yes Mr. Rogers, Sir prepared a room in advance just in case you decide to show up.”

“Oh.”

“Would you like me to show you?” Steve considers that for a second, glancing at the still sleeping Stark.

Steve nods. “Alright.”

* * *

 

The trip to his room was uneventful, just a few questions at Jarvis, testing out the depth of his ‘intelligence.’ It turned out to be pretty fun, Jarvis was easy to talk to and it was nice not to be left in the dust because of new age technology. Jarvis was patient and able to answer all of the questions Steve aimed his way, with preciseness and in a comprehensible way that even Steve could understand.

His room itself, said Jarvis, was personalized to what Mr. Stark believed would be to Steve’s taste. A classic layout of warm colors and cotton sheets. Steve loved it, but it felt a little empty with him all by himself. Which was odd, he had been wandering the past few weeks alone, but somehow being in this big homey mansion made him feel more alone.

He asks Jarvis to show him back to the living room, not knowing what else to do.

When he gets back, Stark was in a different position from before. Laid out, rather than huddled into a ball. One of his legs was spilling out of the couch and his one visible hand was clutched at his chest.

Steve doesn’t mean to pry, but that’s exactly what he did. He sits on a nearby couch, watching the peacefully sleeping Stark.

“His chest… It’s really glowing.” He whispers.

“Yes, that would be the Arc Reactor.” Steve manages to prevent the jump this time, but his heart still skipped a beat at Jarvis’s sudden statement.

“Right.” He exhales. “His file… mentioned something like that.”

“Were you able to read all of Sir’s file?”

Steve shakes his head. “No, I didn’t read all of it. It’s private, I only read the pages that Fury had assigned to me, figured what I didn’t know probably won’t hurt me.”

Jarvis doesn’t answer for a while, but when he does Steve feels a little relieved. “I’m sure Sir would appreciate the sentiment.”

“Hmm…” Steve just smiles, being here felt a lot more comfortable than he would have initial thought. He finally relaxes his stance a little. His movements, results into a little _‘Cling’_ when the tin case hit the metal zipper of his jacket.

He fishes out the small container from his jacket pockets, the cold feel of the metal feeling refreshing on his palms.

_“Anyways, make sure to take them regularly when you decide to move in.”_

Steve pops open the lid, and picks up one of the capsules. _I suppose this means I’m moving in._ He swallows it dry, with the ease of someone who has done this many times before.

Just as he was putting the case back into his pockets, Steve hears a a quiet whimper. Steve blinks, the hand that Tony had clutched at his chest was shaking.

“A nightmare?”

“I’m afraid so Mr. Rogers.” The agonized expression on Stark’s face was worrying.

“Is he going to be okay?” He wants to ask ‘ _How often? Why?’_ but he was already entreating upon Stark’s privacy just being here, never mind asking about something that was obviously private.

“I cannot say Mr. Rogers.” Another muffled whimper from Stark, and Steve is tempted to sit next to him, and run his fingers through the messy brown locks. He stands up instead, not liking the fact that he can’t actually do _anything._

His new view allows him to see Stark’s hidden hand, which was clutching the cushions tightly. Steve bites his lips, but that doesn’t stop him from brushing off a stray strand of hair from Stark’s now sweaty forehead. _There’s nothing I can do._

“Jarvis?” Well… there is _one_ something he could do.

“Yes Mr. Rogers?” The AI’s tone sounded a touch more emotional than usual, he sounded… _worried._

“I- uhm. Do you think Mr. Stark would like an omelet for breakfast?”

A pause. “I’m sure Sir would appreciate it, especially if you pair it with some hot coffee.”

“Should I start with the coffee?”

“I would suggest not, Sir has keen senses when it comes to his coffee, he would waken at the slightest hint of it.” The tone was light now and slight… _teasing?_ Steve pauses. _Was that a joke?_ He doesn’t bother holding back the chuckles. _Had he said that to cheer me up?_ Jarvis was pretty amazing.

“Alright, so omelets first.”

“That would probably the best thing to do.”

“Right.” Steve scans the attached kitchen. It was clean, with more than an adequate arrangement of cooking utensils and other devices. “Uhm. The ingredients.”

“That would be in the refrigerator. The one on the furthest right.”

_Right._ Steve briefly wonders how he had missed it. The thing was _huge._ He approaches it with some trepidation, carefully wrapping his hands around the handles and opening it with a gentle pull. “Wow.”

“Sir keeps it fully stocked at all times.”

“I see that.” Steve feels more than a little overwhelmed. “Eggs and milk first and then?” He sighs. It had been a while since he was able to cook so freely.

“Sir prefers his omelet’s with tomatoes, cheese and a little bacon.”

Steve blinks. “Thanks Jarvis.” Searching for said items in the fridge.

“No problem Mr. Rogers, and perhaps you should add some fresh vegetables with that. Sir does like his vegetable shakes.” There’s an un-identifiable tone in Jarvis’s voice, but Steve doesn’t try to look too hard into it, still busy with preparing the ingredients.

“Should I add some spinach, onions and basil to it as well?” Steve asks, already setting said items on the counter.

“That would be fine.”

“Alright.” Steve chances another glance at the still sleeping Stark. He seemed a little bit more peaceful now? _Maybe the noise was helping?_ Steve scoffs, _I should probably stop dreaming_. He manages to look away a few seconds later, mindlessly looking at the ingredients in front of him.

“The mixing bowls are in the drawer to your right.”

“Oh.” Steve opens said drawer, picking a large stainless steel mixing bowl. “Thanks again Jarvis.” He grabs a whisk from the fancy twirling utensil stand. “Alright, let’s give this a shot.”

He works peacefully for a while. The silence breaking only once when he asked Jarvis where the pans for the ovens were. Cooking had always been relaxing for Steve, and it was still relaxing to this day. Occasionally he would chance a glance at the couch were Tony was still sleeping, but fortunately the nightmare seemed to have passed.

He finished in half an hour, leaving the baked omelet out to cool.

“You found your way here pretty quickly.” Steve almost drops the coffee machine. Jarvis had just started showing him how it worked.

“Natasha.” Steve acknowledged. “Mr. Barton.” He nodded at the man who stood quietly behind her. He notes quietly that Barton was wearing blockers this time.

“Call me Clint.” ‘Clint’ said, offering a wave in greeting.

“Right, then please call me Steve.” He says to both of them.

The two quietly finds a seat on the counters. “So, what’cha cooking? It smells pretty good.” Steve smiles, it’s a good thing he had made extra then.

“Baked omelet, would you like some?”

Clint peeks at the baking tray, still filled with steaming omelet. “Don’t mind if I do.” Steve nods, and starts preparing a plate for Clint. Clint watches all this happily, although he does stand up to grab some juice from the fridge.

Steve sets the plate, in front of Clint who of attacks it viciously. “Would you like some as well Natasha?” Natasha had been looking at him with another one of her _searching_ looks.

She hummed slowly. “That would be nice, Cap. Thank you.”

Steve doesn’t hesitate to prepare her a plate as well, but a bit more quickly. Since Natasha has still not stopped looking at him weirdly. “Here you go.”

Steve sighed inwardly when she finally looks away in order to stare at the food. It was his turn to watch as she brings the spoon slowly into her mouth. Her first bite was finished quickly, but she doesn’t go how another one, instead she hummed once more. “It’s delicious.”

“Thank you.” Steve started preparing a plate of his own, finding that it’s less awkward when he was doing something else. 

“I didn’t know you could cook actually.” Clint said in between bites.

“Ah… yah. I learned when I was young.” Natasha’s eyes narrowed.

“Interesting.” Was all she said, as she finally picks up her spoon again to eat. She doesn’t say anything for a while, and Steve opts to sit next to Clint in order to eat his own meal. “I noticed Tony asleep on the couch.” She announced calmly.

Clint doesn’t seem to hear, too busy with his own plate of food.

“He was asleep when I came.” Steve shrugged, trying to sound as equally calm.

“So what time did you come to the mansion Steve?”

Steve paused, _why did this conversation seem a little… weird?_ “I’m not sure.” He finds himself saying, somewhat defensively.

“That would be 3:51 AM, Mr. Rogers.” Ack… _Too helpful Jarvis, too helpful._

“That’s pretty late.” Natasha sounds sly now, twirling the tip of her spoon on the almost empty plate.

“I guess so…”

“And you have mostly been in the living room since then?” She asked, _too innocent._

“That would be correct.” He clears his throat. Somehow she made him nervous, despite not having done anything wrong.

“I see.” She looks down at her face _too thoughtful._

“Ah! That hit the spot. Thanks Steve!” Clint announces after he finished his own plate, and gulped down the rest of his juice.

Natasha finishes of quickly after that as well, with a “Thanks Cap.” Of her own.

“Well, we’re gonna head over to HQ for a few, should be back before dark.” Clint stretches in his seat.

Steve, who just finished his own plate, grabs both of theirs and brings it over to the sink. He doesn’t miss Natasha’s eyes following him as he moved.

“Yah… See you later Cap.” Natasha slinks off her seat with a few stretches of her own.

“See you.” He manages to say as they both walked off.

He washes the dishes, getting a little thoughtful himself. Clint was a lot friendlier and easier to talk to than before.

“Oh! Good Morning...” A soft voice says from behind him.

“Dr. Banner.” Steve tips his head in greeting.

“Bruce, please.” He continues onto the kitchen counter, seemingly familiar with his environment.

“Bruce.” Steve offers a small smile, and gets a tight-lipped smile in return. “Would you like some breakfast? I cooked some baked omelet.”

Bruce seems wary of the invite but nods nonetheless. “Uhm… sure. That would be nice.”

Steve plates up some omelet for Bruce, who just smiles again as he continues to prepare his… uhm _tea perhaps?_

It continues on quietly for a bit, too quiet. Steve awkwardly heads back to the coffee maker, and Jarvis pipes up helpfully. Telling him how much water to put and where, how much beans and which coffee beans were preferred etc.

It ended up being easier than the complex dials and buttons made it seemed.

Steve could feel Bruce watching, but unlike Natasha he wasn’t obvious, watching Steve at the corner of his eyes, rather than point blank. As soon as Steve managed to successfully start off the actual coffee making process, Bruce stood up carrying his own plate to an oven-like-device inserted in one of the counters. He’s going to have to ask Jarvis to explain that to him as well, along with a number of other things. 

“Uh, thanks… Steve, I’m going to go head up to the lab.” Steve just smiles and nods, and Bruce leaves pretty quickly after that.

Steve sighs and leans against the counter. The team was nice, but he didn’t know how to deal with them outside of the job. He looks back at Tony, who was shuffling a little now in his sleep. Fortunately, it didn’t seem as if he was doing it restlessly.

“Sir should be waking up anytime soon.” Steve smiled, he didn’t jump this time.

“So I guess you weren’t lying when you said he has a keen sense when it comes to coffee then?” Steve chuckled, looking back at the shiny machine.

“Of course not Mr. Rogers. Coffee is very important to Sir.” Steve shook his head, a bright smile on his face. “It shouldn’t take long now before Sir is awake, I would suggest having a full cup of coffee prepared before he does.”

Steve does as Jarvis asked, quietly going through the motions of pouring a cup of coffee. It was relaxing somehow, calming to know that he was able to do something for Stark. After all, Stark had been willing to risk his very life the last time they had seen each other. Literally prepared to throw himself into the pits. He had been so brave then, not a single shake in his voice as he announced his plan. Seeing him on that couch, in agony over some unknown grief? It just… didn’t feel right.

He goes the extra mile and reheats a plate of some omelet, he had already asked Jarvis how to use the… whatever it was. So it didn’t require any struggling or noise. Which was probably for the best, as he hears shuffling coming from the direction of the couch.

With a bite of his lips, Steve wills the heating-contraption -he really needs to ask Jarvis what it’s called at a later date- to hurry. He doesn’t let the timer tick down to zero, grabbing the cup of coffee and rushing- carefully- to the living room area.

“Good Morning.” He greets as cheerily as possible.

Steve watched the brown eyes blink at the ceiling, scrunched up in an…

Steve would really like not to call it adorable, but it was. _I wonder what he’s thinking about?_

Steve is jolted from his own thoughts when Tony yawns, stretching himself into a sitting position. “Coffee?” He offered the plain white cup, and Tony took it immediately, still not looking at Steve’s direction. Even though he had just woken up, Tony didn’t look at all rested. His skin looked flushed and somewhat pale and his eyes deeply sunken in. “You look like you haven’t eaten in day.” Steve scolds, without fully meaning to. It sort of just… _came out?_

“Probably.” Was what Tony 'probably' meant to say, although it sounded more like _‘a-urbly’_

Steve doesn’t hesitate to place the newly heated omelet in front of him. “I don’t think that’s very healthy.” He grumbles, once again saying it aloud without fully intending to do so.

“Hmm…” Tony ignores him in favor of the omelet.

“Ehem.” Steve clears his throat, loudly, being ignored was starting to get on his nerves.

Tony blinks up at him, _finally._ “Right… there’s someone else in the room with me.” He mumbles, tilting his head.

“Ah yeah, I’ve been here the whole time.” Tony seemed surprised at the answer. _No back talk then? I am the one intruding after all…_ “Actually, about that. I hope you don’t mind. Fury said that it was best for me to stay here, with you and the rest of the team and-” Steve rambled, stopping himself abruptly when Tony’s eyes had glanced back at him.

“It’s okay.” Tony looks away again.

“Look Mr. Stark-” Steve fully intending to apologize about the harsh words they had shared, but his mind was left scrambling for the right words.

“Tony.”

“Right- To- I mean, huh?”

“My father was Mr. Stark, I’m just Tony.” Steve paused. _Tony’s_ tone of voice when he said ‘My father’ didn’t sound right. He had heard some rumors, but rumors were not always to be believed. Although this one seemed to have some bit of value. 

“Right… Tony-” Steve tries again.

“You should sit.” _Okay._ So maybe it was a little frustrating to be prevented from giving his apologies, but he blinks it off and does as Tony says. _Perhaps he doesn’t want me to say sorry?_ But still… “So, I just wanted to say I’m sorry, for the things I said, I didn’t know you enough to make those claims back at the Heli-carrier, and you certainly proved me wrong.” He says all this a little too quickly, but with more sincerity than even he had thought he was able to commit to.

“Well that was awkward.”

It’s Steve’s turn to blink confusedly. “Huh?” He was at a loss for words. _Did I say something wrong?_

“Look Cap.” Tony doesn’t look at him and seems to trail off, playing around with the now empty cup in his hands. Steve blinks at the sight, racing to the counter to get the coffee kettle. He pours a liberal amount of coffee into Tony’s cup and leaves the rest on the table, in case Tony wanted more. Tony doesn’t say anything about this, just observing the dark coffee in his hands. _Perhaps he’s thinking of how to phrase his words…_ Steve thinks, already expecting the worst, but Tony surprises him yet again. “We both said some horrible things, that we probably didn’t mean. Okay? Let’s just leave it at that.”

Steve nods. “I’m still sorry.”

“I guess… Well I didn’t mean what I said either. “You’re something else Cap.” Tony did a little shrug, his hazel eyes locking into Steve’s own blue ones. Steve really couldn’t have prevented the smile on his face. Tony looked a little _dazed_ , and it paired surprisingly well with his mussed up hair and wrinkled appearance. Steve blinked, allowing an awkward second to pass but not able to look away just yet.

Tony Stark, for all his stubbornness was… oddly beautiful.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welp. Sorry again for the lateness. 
> 
> The next few chapters should be pretty interesting, there will be a little time jump. But not too much I think. :D
> 
> Edit: I find it necessary to add, that this story is much milder than the usual ABO dynamic stories, it is my first time writing in this verse, so I chose a slower approach :D Sexual drives and instincts will be explored in further chapters (as the characters learn more about each other and more importantly as Steve learns more about himself), but for now it's mostly political and stereotypes. 
> 
> See you soon!


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